This weekend is an amazing example of the diversity of Coachella Valley. You’ve got everything from stunning, relaxing retirement communities and celebrity golf tournaments to the hip events that people travel all over the country to attend, such as the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival (aka Coachella) and Stagecoach. This weekend marks Weekend One of Coachella—an event attended by everyone from international tourists and celebrities to residents and owners of real estate in Palm Springs, La Quinta, Rancho Mirage and the surrounding desert communities.
This annual three-day music and arts festival takes place at the Empire Polo Club in Indio, and features indie, rock, hip hop and electronic music. Founded by Paul Tollett, Coachella features blockbuster music acts in addition to a wide variety of installation art. The event officially began in 1999—over 10,000 people attended, with headliners including Beck, Tool, Morrissey, Rage Against the Machine and The Chemical Brothers. However, it was reported that the event didn’t generate a profit and was therefore almost ended after the inaugural event.
While there was no festival in 2000, organizers gave it another try in 2001, bringing excitement to music lovers, including those who lived nearby or owned Indio real estate. Jane’s Addiction headlined and the effort was more profitable than the first year. In 2002, the recently reunited Siouxsie and the Banshees, Oasis and Bjork headlined, proving to owners of Indio real estate and other members of the community that the event could stimulate the economy. In 2003, The Beastie Boys Red Hot Chili Peppers, Iggy Pop and The Stooges performed, selling out and drawing worldwide attention to the event.
Since then, the event continued to expand—in 2012, it was scheduled to take place over two weekends, becoming an even bigger draw to attendees from all across the globe. An extremely popular array of diverse, award-winning and legendary musicians and bands who have performed at this festival include Arcade Fire, Duran Duran, Prince, Madonna, Paul McCartney, Kanye West, Blur, Muse, Swedish House Mafia, Daft Punk, The Cure, The Killers, Arctic Monkeys, Nine Inch Nails, Gorillaz, Radiohead, MGMT, The White Stripes, Roger Waters, Florence and the Machine, Swedish House Mafia, Snoop Dogg, Jay-Z and even a hologram of Tupac Shakur.
This year’s lineup includes the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Social Distortion, Wu-Tang Clan, Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds, New Order, Benny Benassi, Lumineers, La Roux, Moby, Vampire Weekend, Eric Prydz, Descendants and many other killer acts.
If you have time before or after the event and are interested in real estate in Palm Springs, La Quinta, Rancho Mirage or Indian Wells, click here to browse some amazing listings.
image: cheekychicago.com